Game 50: Memphis 99, Warriors 93

MEMPHIS — The Warriors aren’t quite ready to go into full-blown panic mode, but the stress level in their locker room was at a season high after Friday’s 99-93 loss to Memphis.
“The urgency is high,” said center Andrew Bogut, who was the last Warriors’ player to leave a deflated visiting locker room at the FedEx Forum. “We haven’t played a complete game in the past (nine) games. We haven’t played a 48-minute game, even the ones we’ve won. It’s coming back to bite us right now that we’re playing against some really good teams.
“There are teams nipping at our heels. If we go on another four-game losing streak now, we’ve got a chance to be out of the playoffs.”
The Warriors (30-20) have gone 4-5 over their past nine games to fall to sixth in the Western Conference standings, only three games ahead of eighth-place Houston. The first three games of their current four-game road trip have been even more disconcerting.
During just their second three-game losing streak of the season, the Warriors have yielded 119.3 points a game on 49.2 percent field-goal shooting and 47 percent three-point shooting. They’ve been outrebounded by 18 during the stretch and coughed up 15.7 turnovers per contest.
“This is the first time we’ve been through this this year,” said Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, had team highs with 32 points and eight assists against Memphis (31-28). “It’s unfamiliar territory, but we’ve got to stay true to the system and fight through it. … This is a frustrating feeling for us.”
The Warriors’ new-found defense, rebounding and hustle helped them start the season 9-4 on the road and finish each of their first five multi-game roadies with a .500 or better record.
They flew to Dallas late Friday for the their fourth game in five having sunk to 14-14 on the road and having fallen to .500 away from Oakland for the first time since a Nov. 23 loss at Denver dropped them to 4-4.
They also flew to Dallas searching for those defensive, rebounding and hustle performances that were once a constant. Memphis was the third straight opponent to score at least 30 first-quarter points against the Warriors and the 16th out of the past 23 to outrebound Golden State in the game.
The Grizzlies extended their lead to 14 points in the second quarter with the ugliest sequence coming midway through the frame. Klay Thompson threw a behind-the-back pass to Mike Conley for the Warriors’ seventh turnover of the half, and Conley pushed the ball ahead for an open Jerryd Bayless three-pointer and a 49-35 lead.
The Warriors showed life in the second half, opening the third quarter on an 11-2 run to take their first lead of the game – 67-65 with 7:30 remaining when Bogut tipped in a rebound. They grabbed an 86-83 lead on back-to-back three-pointers by Curry with 8:10 remaining in the fourth.
But the Grizzlies went back to their big men, with Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol each scoring four points during a 13-2 run that gave Memphis a 96-88 lead with 2:22 remaining. Gasol finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, Randolph had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Tony Allen scored a season-high 17 points.
Power forward David Lee added 26 points to Curry’s scoring, but no other Warriors were in double figures. Thompson had nine points on 4-of-14 shooting and committed six of the team’s 16 turnovers. No other player had more than two.
“Everyone is going to be asking questions, but we know what we’re capable of,” Bogut said. “We’ve got to re-evaluate what we’re doing and make sure we’re focused defensively, because that’s what got us to 30-17.”
Back when there was no reason to panic.